SYDNEY ROYAL SHOW DESCRIBED BY WHAKATANIAN

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 13, Issue 88, 18 May 1949, Page 5

SYDNEY ROYAL SHOW DESCRIBED BY WHAKATANIAN

The bewildering spectacle of the Sydney Royal Show is vividly described by the former Clerk of the Court at Whakatane, Mr T. Morgan, who is at present holidaying in Australia, in a letter to friends at Whakatane. He states that to a New Zealander it was an amazing sight that almost defied description.

Of the approach to the show Mr Morgan writes: On arrival at the show buildings it was a unique sight to see hundreds or really thousands of cars, trucks, buses, and trams disgorging all the multitude of people of every nationality, size and shape arrayed in all their glory for the Royal Show.

, “Once inside the 70-odd turn styles it. was indescribable the sights and sounds that met the eyes and ears. There were hundreds and hundreds of side shows of every conceivable size and shape with megaphones and radios blaring and every colour of the rainbow in decorations and dress.” Different sections of the show were visited by Mr Morgan. Here is the description of the Agriculture Hall.

Mountains Of Fruit “I’ve never seen such a glorious sight. Imagine a hall four times the size of, the Winter Show Building, twice as high, and mountains of fruit and produce, nuts, corn, preserves, bottled and dried, arranged like a grandstand from ceiling to ground with a passage way through the centre.”

The official opening of the show was the Wednesday before Easter week-end and was done by the Governor-General.

“As the King was to have opened it, the show was the best they have ever held because all the entries had been received before it wds known His Majesty could not be present; so we were lucky . . . . We stayed on until the end of the night’s performance. Apart from races, trotting, hurdles, buck jumping, wild bullock riding in the huge centre arena, a huge military torchlight tattoo was the star event. Comprising 3,700 army, navy, nursing staffs, V.A.D.’s, etc., all formed into the formation of the All Nations map and all the grounds lights were put out and we saw the 3,700 torches worn on the heads •_ in red, white and blue colours.”

Mr Morgan mentioned the latest developments he had seen on display in radio and television sets and also kitchen, dining room, lounge and bedroom suites, which compared unfavourably with prices in New Zealand. At the time of writing he still had much of the show to cover.